Turkey Blames Kurds for Murder of Armenian Clergy, Pashinyan Appeals to Putin for Community Safety

The newspaper "Zhamanak" reports that the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs has issued a statement regarding the murder of Armenian Catholic clergy in the city of Qamishli, northern Syria. While expressing condolences to the Syrian people, the Turkish Foreign Ministry simultaneously stated that the murder occurred in a region controlled by Kurdish forces. As is known, a few days ago, two clerics from the Armenian Catholic Church in Qamishli were murdered.

In this regard, Yerevan made a condemning statement, viewing the incident as a consequence of Turkey's military incursion in northern Syria. The response from the Turkish Foreign Ministry can be interpreted as an indirect answer to the Armenian side's allegations. The Turks are essentially stating that the murder is not their doing, but rather that of the Kurds. In any case, they are addressing the matter to the Kurds, stating that the murder occurred in an area under their control.

The situation in Qamishli is particularly significant for the Armenian side, not only due to the presence of several thousand Armenians in the region but also because of Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's recent appeal to President Putin concerning the security of the Armenian community. Pashinyan announced that he had approached Putin regarding the safety of the Armenian community when Turkey invaded northern Syria. Subsequently, Pashinyan clarified that the issue pertained specifically to the safety of Armenians in Qamishli, adding that it had also been discussed during the meeting between the presidents of Turkey and Russia in Sochi.

The murder of the clerics indicates that there are security issues at play. The fact is that, according to the agreement between Putin and Erdogan in Sochi, Qamishli was excluded from the Turkish-Russian patrol zone. Following the statement from Turkey's Foreign Ministry regarding the murder, information emerged about a meeting in Moscow between the Armenian ambassador and the representative of the President of Russia for the Middle East, during which they discussed the "urgent issues" of Armenian-Russian cooperation related to Syria. This meeting in Moscow occurred just days before the Turkish Foreign Ministry's announcement, which raises the question: did Moscow raise the issue of the Armenian clergy with Turkey at Armenia's initiative, to which Ankara responded that such matters should be addressed to the Kurds?

Additionally, will this incident serve as a basis for Turkey and Russia to expand their joint patrol zone to include Qamishli? On November 13, Turkey's President discussed the situation in Syria in the U.S. with Trump, and subsequently stated that he would address the issue with Putin. Will Yerevan also participate in shaping the agenda for that meeting, as was the case with the Sochi meeting, and what will be the outcome?

For more details, see today’s edition of the newspaper.